Ball-forming machine.



Patented sept. 5, i899. m. F. cttmsTENsEN.

BALL FURMING MACHINE.

(Application tiled July 12, 189B.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

W/ T/VESSES A TTOH/VEYSI No. 632,335. Patented Sept. 5, |899.

M. F. CHRISTENSEN.

BALL FURMINE MACHINE.

(Application filed July 12, 1898.) (nu Model.) 2 sheets-sheer 2.

/I/VVENTO/ JWM/73. @e6/W y.

BY i( amw ATTORNEY@ Nirnn STATES.V

Ar'rnNT Fries.

MARTIN F. O/HRISTENSEN, OF CLEVELAND., OHIO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-FIFTH TO CHARLES J. MARBAOH, OFSAME PLACE.

BALL-FORNIING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 632,33 5, dated September 5, 1899.

Application filed July 12, 1898. I Serial No. 685,752. (No modeld To @ZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, MARTIN EUHRISTEN- sEN, of Cleveland, county of Cuyahoga, and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ball Forming or Finishing Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to a machine for forming or nishing balls such as are used for ball-bearings.

My invention consists in the peculiar formation and relative position of the formingsurfaces and in other peculiarities and details of construction to be hereinafter fully set forth and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure I is a view, half in elevation and half in vertical section, of a machine embodying my invention. Fig. II is a sectional View illustrating a modification of the inner conical roller. Figs. III, IV, and V also illustrate modifications or modified forms of construction which will be fully described hereinafter. Fig.VI illustrates my preferred form of blanks and preferred method of obtaining the same.

A represents the base of my machine,which may be of any suitable shape adapted to sustain the operative parts of the device. Pref` erably in some portions of this base, as at A', I provide a chamber or a receiver for containing and receiving the finished balls. This, however, forms no important feature of my invention and is only a convenient auxiliary thereto.

In the construction illustrated in Figs. I, Il, and III, B represents a hollow conical casing,which is properly secured in position upon the base A, preferably by means of forming the base A at its upper end with a iiange a. and forming a flange b at the lower end of the casing B and securing both flanges together by means of bolts or screws b.

C represents a conical roller, which is mounted in the interior of the casing B and provided with means, hereinafter to be described, for adjusting it in relation to the in- 5o ner face of the casing B, thus enlarging or I contracting the space c between the outer or peripheral surface of the roller c and the inner face of the casing B accordingly as the roller O is inoved toward or away from the inner surface of the casing B. The roller C is mounted so as to freely revolve within the casing B, and is thus adapted to be driven by means of suitable driving devices, such as a gear wheel and pinion secured, respectively,

to roller-spindle E and a driving-shaft- The 6o spindle E is secured to the conical roller or grinder O at ,its upper end and is journaled in the upper part of the casing B, as at E'.

E2 represents a shoulder, which is formed on a shaft or spindle E at a point above the bearing E/ and forms a seat for an adjustable sleeve or bushing F.

B is a cap-piece or head, which is secured by means of flanges and suitable bolts or screws to the upper end of the casing B. 7o

This cap or head B incloses the bushing F, and the bushingfis made adjustable therein by providing screw thread connections, as illustrated at F', between the parts. Alocknut F2 is provided, which engages the exter- 75 nal screw-thread of the bushing F, and thus locks the bushing in its adjusted position.

The spindle E at its lower portion, as Gr, is formed with a collar l, constituting a bearing, on which a bearing-collar 2 under the ro- 8o tating cone rests, substantially as indicated in Fig. l of lthe drawings. The spindle is steadied in a vertical bearing in the base and has its lower end stepped in a vertically-adjustable step-bearing' 3, suitably supported 85 and arranged in a block G and locked in any position by means of a locking-nut 4, the adj ustments being' made by means of a micrometer-screw G3. It will thus be perceived that by the adjustment of the step-bearing 3 9o the spindle and with it the rotary cone will be moved upward or downward.

As illustrated in Fig. I of the drawings, I provide the inner face of the casing B with a continuous spiral groove H, which decreases graduallyin width and depth as the convolutions advance toward the base of the casing, thus making the groove II Wider and deeper at the receiving end and narrower and shallower at its delivering end or linishing end. roo

It will also be noticed that the opposing surfaces formed by the inner face of the casing B and the outer surface of the conical roller Gr are a greater distance apart at the apex than at the base, thus forming the space c Wedge shape, being greater at the top and narrower at the bottom or base.

I prefer to form the conical roller C at its upper end with small or fine ribs or corrugations C', the same being coarser at the upper end of the roller C and diminishing,until disappearing entirely, at or near the base of the roller, thus leaving the roller at this portion smooth and even for finishing the ball and making it smooth and uniform. The ribs or corrugations C' maybe replaced by a suitable number of grooves O2 C2, as illustrated in Fig. II of the drawings. These grooves C2 C: may extend to the base of the conev or may diminish and disappear as they advance toward the base in like manner to the corrugations C. (Illustrated in Fig. I.)

As illustrated in Fig. III of the drawings, the corrugations or grooves which are formed on the conical roller() may be so formed upon the face of the said roller as to advance in a spiral toward the base of said roller. The direction of the pitch of the spiral upon the conical roller C is preferably opposite or opposed to' the direction of the pitch of the groove H on the inner face of the casing D.

B2 represents afeeding hole or orifice,which may be of any suitable shape to receive the blanks and feed them into the space c. The lower end of a suitable hopper (not shown) registers or meets with the starting end of the groove H and is sufficiently large (as is also the starting-point of the groove H) to freely receive the irregular blanks as they are fed through the hopper.

The operation of my device when constructed as illustrated in Figs. I, II, and III is as follows: Blanks of suitable size are cut from a heated or cold bar, preferably in the manner illustrated in Fig. VI. These blanks are then successively fed into the machine through the hopper B', and being received into the groove H they are acted upon by compression in such a manner as to assume the ultimate globular shape. The action of the conical roller C is to drive the blank down through the groove H, giving to the blank a gyratory motion and a rolling motion. The

blank is driven around its 'own axis by the action of the roller O and is also at the same time driven around the axis of the roller C, and it receives an advancing movement to- Ward the base of the machine, being compressed continuously as it is being acted upon,

the ultimate result being a perfect ball or globe.

The grooves or corrugations (or roughness) of the inner conical roller act upon the blank so as to drive it along through the groove H, and it is by the peculiarities of this groove, both in its shape and its contour, that the blank is acted upon at every point and compressed into a perfect sphere or globe.

In constructing my machine I have found that the best results may be obtained by constructing the machine, as far as regards its inner conical roller C, as illustrated in Figs. I, II, and III but, if desired, the machine can be constructed as illustrated in Fig. IV. This figure illustrates the machine in which the outer casing B is in the form of a disk and the spiral groove H is formed in its face. The roller or moving member C is formed or shaped with a flat surface instead of being conical, and this fiat surface may be provided with the grooves C' or may be made rough like unto said roller C.

WVhile I have shown and set forth my preferred method of constructing the machine and have illustrated and described some modifications of the same, I do not wish to be understood as to limiting my invention to any particular one or to all of the modifications set forth inasmuch as the angle of the space c may be varied more or less, as may also the pitch and contour of the spiral groove I'I. Other variations may also be made without departing from my invention.

l. A machine for making and finishing balls, comprising a stationary element provided With a tapering spiral groove in its surface, and a revoluble element disposed in operative relation to the stationary element and provided with a roughened surface opposed to the pitch of the spiral and operating to carry the balls in the circular spiral path described by the spiral of the stationary element, substantially as described.

2. A machine for making and finishing balls, comprising a stationary conical outer casing provided with a tapering spiral groove in its inner surface, and an inner conical revoluble roller disposed within the conical casing and formed with tapering longitudinal grooves in its surface, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

Signed by me at Cleveland, Ohio, this 29th day of June, 1898.

MARTIN F. CHRIS'IENSEN. Vitnesses:

WV. E. DONNELLY, ANNA Il. IAnrmfrtr.

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